Source: James Hardie Building Products Inc., Mission Viejo, Calif.
A $750,000 Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) grant, supported by the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, will help update fiber cement recycling at James Hardie’s Peru, Ill., operation. Representing an estimated $1.5 million investment split between the state agency and Hardie, new equipment will collect and reclaim off-specification HardieTrim XLD boards and fiber cement dust for use in the recently announced Crown Mouldings line.
“The standard practice within the industry is that off-spec boards are sent to a landfill,” says Hardie Trim Engineering Manager Tom Jagiella. “With this equipment we’re able to convert them into high-quality marketable products. It’s a great example of how sustainability can be good for business.”
Qualifying as regional material under the LEED rating system for green buildings,
Hardie’s fiber cement products are made from wood pulp, sand, cement and water, typically sourced and processed near each production facility. The Peru plant upgrade qualified for DCEO/ARRA funding in the category of “Recycled Content Products,” which is considered part of stimulus plan’s “Green Industry.”